Exoneration
by iWatchtv
Summary: Post-judgement day, just because. 3-shot, Tony, Ziva, then McGee. Tiva in the last two chapters.
1. That Good

**Note: **First of all, I just want to say that the navy is great. The fact i put Tony on a pretty corrupted ship is just because it makes a better story, no reflection on the actual ship, that's why i don't name it. Second of all, I wrote this the day school started so it's not as light and fluffy the rest of my fics (both of them). Oh yeah, and this is my first multi chapt fic and it's gonna be a 3 shot, which is like a one shot, but three times longer. This one is Tony, then Ziva ,then McGee. There will be a little Tiva, but more in like the 2nd and 3rd parts. This more deals with Tony and i really liked the idea that he gets kicked of the ship because he's so good at what he does that he pissed everyone off. Maybe not realistic, but i liked it. I really like reviews. Just saying.

Exoneration part one

That Good

Tony leaned his head on the window, reveling in its cool touch. His eyes drifted towards the slowly shrinking vessel in the distance that had been his home for the past eight months. He had arrived racked by the guilt of Jenny's death and left without it. The Agent Afloat position had provided Tony with, not absolution, but something else he never could have had in DC. Time. Time he used to accept and let go.

Had he been surrounded by constant reminders of what his mistakes had cost, he probably would never had fully recovered. However, with the relative isolation of the ship, he had come to terms with his choice and the results, and that meant it was time to return to where he belonged.

He was going home.

Shortly after his arrival at his new station, Tony had thrown himself into his work with a passion even he didn't know he had possessed. The tireless days and nights were usually followed by semi comatose states in his cabin. A normal NCIS agent afloat would have spent his or her time casually patrolling; only becoming involved if there was a pressing need. Tony wasn't normal. He was driven by anger and guilt, emotions that drove him to bury himself in his work. The expression of these emotions released the pressure that had been building on his psyche since he had burst into that dusty diner thousands of miles away. In the process of expressing his anger, he managed to trigger it in many others. Within the first two months, he had uncovered a prostitution ring and gambling ring.

The majority of the crew were less than pleased.

Within the next month, he had confiscated large amounts of various narcotics. A few of the crew became discontent with an internal affairs agent in their midst, particularly such an efficient one. Tony had taken away some of the few pleasures they had aboard their ship and they were resentful of it. Even the captain, grew wary of the NCIS agent constantly searching for illegalities on his ship. It also damaged his ego that this newcomer had found so much that had been right under his nose.

The captain had decided after the fourth month to begin the campaign against Tony DiNozzo. The plan was easy. Praise him to anyone who would listen.

Tony was awarded every commendation the crew could think of and each and every one was reported directly to the SecNav. It was annoying for everyone involved to say the least.

Tony swore that they would have awarded him the Medal of Honor if it would get him of their ship. He knew of it of course, and the possibility he could get re-instated to his old team replaced his old motivators which had slowly begun to run dry.

And so continued that constant flow of appreciation and the gushing compliments and the sentiments that he was too good to waste on a single ship. He was such an asset that he should be returned the NCIS headquarters in DC immediately where he could reach his full potential.

That road had led him here, a heli-pad in DC. The helicopter came to the ground with a sudden jolt. Tony carefully disembarked and was greeted by the familiar sight of Leroy Jethro Gibbs.

"Welcome back DiNozzo." Gibbs seemed thinner, perhaps paler, but still mostly the same.

"It's good to be back," He paused, "Boss." Tony smiled for the first time in what felt like months. They turned and began to walk towards the building side-by-side.

Smack.

"Ow," He rubbed his head. "What was that for?" Gibbs smiled.

"For old times sake DiNozzo. For old times sake." Tony returned the smile.

It felt good, really good. The old Tony was back, and he was home.


	2. 8 Months

**Note: **K, so this is the second part of the three part story, and this went through ALOT of revisions. I rewrote it like 3 times, and this is the best, but I'm still a little not satisfied with it. But it's the best i could do at the moment. Just a quick thing, I was watching Burn Notice and in one of the episodes, there was something about how the head of security in an embassy is always a spy, so i figured that that could be a possible place where Ziva would end up. The first chapter dealt with Tony's guilt, this one is Ziva's confusion, and the third one is still up in the air. literally. And i got the NCIS season 5 dvd set. Awesome. Call me crazy, but for some reason i just like the audio commentaries. oh yeah, review, because i need more. And this chapter and the next one will have more Tiva, just to let you know.

8 Months

Ziva stared at her desk. The past eight months had been filled with little but paperwork. Ever since her unceremonious firing from NCIS, she had been barred from missions, and there was only one place for spies who were not suitable for the field. The office.

But more than the thrill, she missed them, the team. It had been eight months since she had been berated for her suicidal driving techniques. Eight months since she had been Gibbs slapped. Eight months since she had taken a few fingerprints and some DNA and recreated a murder. Eight months since she had been called a crazy Israeli chick. That last memory soon led to others she would rather not delve into at the moment.

She sighed. This sudden onset of nostalgia was clouding her mind and judgement. She needed to clear her head. She grabbed her coat and briskly strode out of the embassy and onto the streets of Washington DC. That was the one thing she had been given by her father. The choice to do paper work in Tel Aviv, or in Washington.

She had chosen the latter, but there were few advantages. Vance had stripped her of her security clearance and even had denied her access to her former headquarters. That and driving the remaining members of her team ragged hadn't helped. She hadn't seen McGee or Gibbs for over a month. Even Abby and Ducky had been unavailable. Vance was trying to accomplish something by keeping his agents free time to a minimum.

"Ziva," Her train of thought was stalled by the familiar voice, a voice that she had begun to think she would never hear again. The fact that it was illogical to believe she would never see Tony again did not stop her from thinking it. She turned around slowly.

"Tony." She answered with the same uncertainty she had heard in his voice. He quickly smirked.

"Gibbs said you were chief of security at the embassy now. I just thought I would drop by, see how secure it was, and I've got to say, I'm a little disappointed. I mean, I almost snuck up on you." She ignored the weak attempt at humor.

"Shouldn't you be seducing some girl Tony? You did just come back from sea after all." She was not ready for one of his games right now. To be honest, she wasn't ready for him.

"How did you know?"

"Your are riding with Gibbs and not in your Mustang." She nodded in the direction of Gibbs who was currently leaning against his car. "So, are you going to pick one up on the way back to NCIS?"

"Maybe I'm already trying." She didn't respond. That comment was one she did not want to analyze to closely. Tony was...had been her partner. That had been the most she was willing to consciously think about it before the directors death. They were partners, no more, no less. Somehow, the more she had told herself that, the more hollow it had seemed.

Then, he had left, been sent away, and she was alone again. Partnerless. Paperwork was not a two man job. She had begun using her vast amount of free time to think about what exactly he had meant to him; she never got very far before becoming lost in her own emotions. All she knew for certain, was that when he was not there, she felt like less than she should be.

And now he was back. She had imagined that when he returned, things would be like before. He would sleep with every woman within a five mile radius, they would joke. Things would be normal. But here he was, not looking at any other woman. He was not being regular Tony. For the first time in a long time, Ziva didn't know what to do. And so they stood in silence, deciphering what had happened and what could happen, and most importantly, what should happen.

"Do I need to turn the hose on you two?" Gibbs finally asked, silently laughing. They amused him.

"Well boss," Tony spoke first, "I for one would love to have a wet T-shirt contest. There's plenty of great candidates around here." Gibbs wasn't the only one to notice Tony un-wandering eyes. "But unfortunately, we have one more stop to make."

"We?" Ziva raised her eyebrows and glanced at Gibbs.

"We." He confirmed.

"But Gibbs, I doubt I will be allowed onto the base. Vance has not been very tolerant of my attempts to 'visit'.

"Oh, he won't mind."

"Why not?" She didn't receive an answer. Gibbs simply walked around to the front of his car and shot the two a look.

They slid into the back seat together.

"So," Tony asked slyly, all former apprehension gone. "Did you miss me?"

Ziva rolled her eyes.

"Like a dog misses bee's."

"Like a dog misses fleas Ziva, and I'll take that as a yes. And since we're being all emotional and gushy. I missed you too. Once."

Gibbs smiled to himself. It was a start to a new beginning. If you believed sentimental crap like that anyway.


	3. Returns

**Note:** So, this I think this is the longest chapter yet as well as the final one. Go me. I am not gonna make this a 4-shot sorry, but I am however toying with the idea of a sequel, because i have a few plot holes. Okay, alot of like gaping plot holes which more or less force me to write a sequel...Oh yeah, and i already have a title for it, if not an actual plot. 48 hours. So watch out. but i wanted to do a few one-shots first do to the fact i have a pretty short attention span. Especially for multi chaptered fics.

I would like to go into detail of all the great ideas i had with this story and all the revisions i had to do and all the writers block, but i won't. Now, please read and review. because seriously, reviews are really really really good. aka, they make me write more.

Returns

Timothy McGee was sitting at his desk. Not his temporary desk, as he called the one in cyber crimes, but his real desk. The one Gibbs had ordered him to sit in that morning and never returned.

The fact he had no idea why he was sitting there was a minor detail.

And so McGee had remained there doing what he always did when he had absolutely nothing to do. Writing. He didn't have his type writer with him, so he was currently using his computer

_Lisa stared at the approaching figure, one she had long given up for dead. The man stopped a few feet from her._

"_Lisa..." Special agent Tommy trailed off._

"_Tommy, I thought you were dead. Your ship was lost in that storm...I assumed the worst..." Agent Tommy smiled slightly._

"_It's good to know you cared." He faltered. He had so much to tell her. As he had sat in that life raft for days, she was the only thing he could think of. Suddenly, Lisa lunged towards him and wrapped her arms around his neck. _

"_I don't want to ever lose you again." She murmured quietly. Tommy's lips brushed her ears._

"_There's something I need to tell you. I-"_

McGee let out a sigh and laid his head on his desk. The new book he was working on was morphing from a crime novel into a cliche soap opera. One day he was going to wake up and realize that he had written a story line including Lisa's twin, love triangles, and a few comas for good measure.

He hadn't been able to write a decent scene, let alone chapter, for nearly eight months. Well, exactly eight months. His publisher had been jumping down his throat, or some equally disturbing metaphor, for weeks.

He gave up trying to write and simply stared at the evil blinking line mocking him.

This is why he preferred typewriters.

His head shot up as he heard two voices coming from the direction of the elevator.

"I was just trying to roll down the window! You didn't have to go all kung-fu on me!"

"I do not know kung-fu, and FUI, you were trying to roll down the window on my side of the car."

"FYI," Tony emphasized the second letter, "I enjoy feeling the breeze."

"And apparently the feeling of crawling on top of me."

"Well, not as much as you'd thi-...ow!." McGee smiled as when he saw the two come into view. They hadn't changed a bit.

"You are the first man to complain about that."

"Patience Ziva. Patience." McGee cleared his throat. Loudly. He had no idea where this conversation was going, and honestly, he didn't want to.

"Probie!" Tony whirled around. "All grown-up and eavesdropping on private conversations! I'm so proud." He slapped the younger man on the back. Hard.

"It's good to see you too Tony?" He wasn't sure if his friend had greeted him or insulted him.

"Where's Gibbs?" McGee scanned the room. The fact that Tony and Ziva were back meant that Gibbs had succeeded at...whatever he had been doing the entire morning.

"Oh, he's right..." Tony glanced at Ziva.

"I did not see where he went." She shrugged.

"He probably went to go tell Abby that you guys are back. Speaking of which, Tony, do you need a place to stay? I know you had to get rid of your place." McGee asked. Tony smirked.

"Let me worry about that probie." McGee, being the trained investigator he was, noticed the nearly imperceptible smile that flashed across Ziva's features.

"You're in a hotel?" It was half question, half statement. He wasn't sure if he wanted to know the real answer.

"Yeah, whatever. So McSpy, tell us what we missed." Tony abruptly changed the subject.

"Yes, give us the 611." Ziva added. Tony rolled his eyes not bothering to correct her. She apparently had dived way too deep into pop culture in the last few months.

"Um..." McGee began, "Yesterday, after the director left, Gibbs kind of promoted Langer and gave him his own team out of the blue. Then, this morning, he told me to get my ass into the bull pen and never came back."

"And where is Director Vance?" Ziva inquired. McGee shifted uncomfortably in his seat. That was the same question he had been dancing around in his mind.

"I...uh...don't know." Tony raised his eyebrows.

"You don't know?" He repeated.

"Director Vance...didn't show up this morning."

"So," Tony said slowly. "The day after Gibbs goes directly against the director's orders, said director goes missing."

"Shouldn't there be search parties? At least some concern?" Ziva interjected.

"Technically, we have no suspicion of foul play. We can't legally declare him missing for forty-eight hours."

"Director Vance goes missing right when he would have objected most to what Gibbs was doing." Tony repeated yet again, not letting it go. "Hasn't Gibbs been telling us for years 'I don't believe in coincidence.'" Tony did his best Gibbs impression.

"But I do believe in luck DiNozzo." Gibbs quietly said as he strode through the bullpen.

"Boss, I don't mean you had anything to do with it, I was just-" Tony quickly backpedaled.

"Don't care." Was his response. "We got a dead marine. Let's go." Gibbs grabbed the file already on his desk and headed towards the elevator as his team followed. He turned suddenly and stopped Ziva.

"You still don't work here. I don't want to see you at the crime scene." Ziva nodded and mournfully stood alone beside her desk. The rest continued on to the elevator. Gibbs once again stopped when they reached it. He pushed the file into McGee's confused hands.

"Wait fifteen minutes. Then follow."

"Why wait fifte-Oh, you want me to bring Ziva." McGee's eyes widened as the realization hit him.

"Do you want me to tell her now or..." He faltered as he was met by Gibbs' silent stare. "Got it boss." Gibbs and Tony stepped into the elevator.

"And McGee, Don't let me see her." McGee nodded as the elevator doors closed. He quickly returned to his desk. Ziva glanced up at the sound of footsteps.

"Uh, Gibbs just wanted me to finish up some paperwork." Her eyes dropped back to her desk and her shoulders slumped in defeat. He would have to tell her eventually. Maybe Gibbs was doing it because he didn't want anyone to know he was bending the rules; or maybe he just wanted her to stew. Who knows.

McGee collapsed back into his chair. He once had nothing to do, well, nothing to do for fifteen minutes. He smiled.

Command, A, delete.

_McGregor looked up from his desk to see two familiar approaching figures. He heard the tinkling laugh now common to the hardened mossad officer. She grinned at her partner._

"_Do you really expect me to believe you were just trying to roll down a window?"_

"_Yes Lisa," Tommy replied with a smile to match hers as he stretched out the syllables in her name. They stared into each others eyes, each saying so much yet so little at the same time._

"_You are not the first man to try to crawl on top of me Agent Tommy." She replied cooly. His own grin widened._

"_I'm hoping to be the last." He nearly whispered to her. They leaned a little closer to each other before breaking off and heading to their respective desks._

McGee leaned back in his desk and smiled.

He could do worse. Much worse.


End file.
